Samantha Jones appeared on And Just Like That for just 74 seconds. It cost $350,000.

Samantha Jones is the epitome of Sex and the City.

Kim Cattrall's character has been sorely missed during the past two seasons of And Just Like That, and the show's new additions have been trying (and sadly failing) to fit the gaping Samantha hole. 

So when it was revealed Cattrall would be reprising her role for a short cameo in And Just Like That's season finale... we were seriously elated. There were high hopes too. 

And for 74 glorious seconds, we basked in Samantha's presence during a phone call between her and Carrie. There were references to the OG days, a fabulous outfit, some swearing and plenty of nostalgia. 

But it was certainly short-lived. Plus, it cost producers a lot of money. 

Watch: A look back at the And Just Like That trailer. Post continues below. 

The actor was reportedly paid around $350,000 for her small cameo in the show

A source said to Page Six that Cattrall received "a sh*tload of money", and Candace Bushnell, the author behind the Sex and the City book that inspired the series, said: "I love Kim, everyone loves Kim. I'm sure she got paid handsomely."

There were strong stipulations as well.

Cattrall did not want to film any scenes with her former co-stars - Sarah Jessica Parker, Cynthia Nixon and Kristin Davis. 

Page Six also reported that Cattrall wanted her scene not to be filmed on the set where show creator Michael Patrick King would be. 

Mamamia's Head of Entertainment Laura Brodnik noted on The Spill that Cattrall's reasoning for doing the cameo likely didn't come down to money. She's had a successful Netflix show this year, has starred in multiple TV shows and movies recently. Plus, the amount she earned from her Sex and the City days would keep her very comfortable for life.

"I don't think it was such a money issue, I wonder if it was just a way for her to keep control of a character that she had built as hers," Brodnik noted.

Another interesting tidbit is that famed and absolutely iconic Sex and the City costume designer Patricia Field dressed Cattrall for her Samantha Jones scene. Why is this relevant you may be wondering? Well Field chose not to work on And Just Like That, instead opting to be the fashion director of Netflix's Emily in Paris. 

Field is also particularly close with Cattrall in real life... we'll let you connect the potential juicy dots. 

But was the high price tag worth it for Cattrall's cameo? It's a hit and miss. 

The cameo reminded us how good Samantha Jones is - and the fact And Just Like That feels lost without her.

Though considering the hype around Cattrall returning, the end result was never going to stack up against that pressure. 

Parker admitted to being really "upset" about the reveal making its way out into the world before AJLT's second season had even started.

"It's a big bummer because it would've been so like fireworks in the middle, you know, and also because we want to make sure that expectations are real," she said on Andy Cohen Live.

Cynthia Nixon agreed, telling The Times: "It was a very brief, very small cameo. I worry that with all the build-up people are going to wonder what all the fuss was about."

Samantha Jones and Carrie Bradshaw's phone call in And Just Like That. Image: HBO.

Some critics have also pointed out the challenge of feeling an authenticity in the scene in question, given we know the real-life drama between Cattrall and Parker. 

From all reports, it appears things were never exactly peachy between Cattrall and SJP. 

In 2017, Cattrall did an interview with Piers Morgan, noting that she and SJP were colleagues, never friends. 

"The common ground that we had was the series, and the series is over. Sarah Jessica, she could have been nicer ... I don't know what her issue is. I never have," Cattrall said.

Despite this, the very public final nail in the coffin for Cattrall and SJP was actually when Cattrall announced via Instagram that her brother had died.

Days later, the actress thanked her fans and colleagues for sending her family support and sympathies. Except there was one colleague in particular that Cattrall was not happy to have heard from: SJP.

Cattrall once again took to Instagram with a post saying "I don't need your love or support at this tragic time @sarahjessicaparker."

She continued: "Your continuous reaching out is a painful reminder of how cruel you really were then and now. Let me make this VERY clear. (If I haven't already) You are not my family. You are not my friend. So I'm writing to tell you one last time to stop exploiting our tragedy in order to restore your 'nice girl' persona."

Sources revealed at the time that SJP had both publicly and privately sent her condolences to Cattrall.

When asked about the estranged relationship on Watch What Happens Live, SJP told host Andy Cohen she was "heartbroken".

"I found it very upsetting because that's not the way I recall our experience. I always think what ties us together is this experience: it was a professional experience, but it became personal because it was years and years of our lives."

In response to the interview Cattrall did with Piers Morgan, SJP clarified to People that from her perspective, she had never fought with Cattrall. 

"I couldn't imagine anyone else playing that part. So there was no fight: it was completely fabricated, because I actually never responded. And I won't, because she needed to say what she needed to say, and that is her privilege," SJP said. 

What's for certain - there's no love lost between Cattrall and Parker. And that rang crystal clear in the cameo, even when they didn't film in one another's presence. 

Feature Image: HBO.